Peter Sagan: On top of the WorldTour

Peter Sagan (Cannondale) has extended his lead at the top of the Union Cycliste Internationale (UCI) WorldTour ranking after winning Ghent-Wevelgem on Sunday.

The Slovak cruised to a solo win in Wevelgem, adding a chunk of points to his already impressive tally amassed by placing second in Milan-San Remo, second in E3 Harelbeke and winning stages in Tirreno-Adriatico.

Sagan’s total of 232 points is more than the entire total of points scored by riders in either the United States, Australia or Belgium. It’s also more than the number of points accrued by teams such as Garmin-Sharp, Blanco, BMC Racing or Movistar.

Irishman Daniel Martin (Garmin-Sharp) enters the ranking for the first time this season after winning the Volta a Catalunya in Spain on Sunday. Catalunya runner-up and last year’s WorldTour final leader Joaquim Rodriguez (Katusha) jumps up the ranking to third behind Sagan and Friday’s E3 Harelbeke winner Fabian Cancellara (RadioShack-Leopard).

Bradley Wiggins (Sky) also enters the ranking for the first time this season in 23rd place after coming fifth overall in Volta a Catalunya. Geraint Thomas (Sky) is the highest-placed British rider in the ranking in fifth. Sky team-mate Chris Froome is in 11th place – his Criterium International win on Sunday counts for nothing in the ranking as the race is not part of the UCI WorldTour.

Sky keeps its position at the head of the team ranking, with Katusha moving up to second and RadioShack-Leopard slipping down to third. Argos-Shimano is the lowest ranked team in the WorldTour with just 12 points to Sky’s 407.

Spain is the top nation in the WorldTour, ahead of Italy in second and Great Britain in third.

The next counting event in the WorldTour will be the Tour of Flanders on March 31.

The UCI’s WorldTour Ranking is compiled using a points system, with points awarded for one-day race, tour stage and stage race overall finishing positions for events in the UCI’s WorldTour.

The amount of points awarded depends on the ranking of the event. For example, winning the Tour de France overall gives a rider twice as many points as winning the Eneco Tour overall.

UCI WorldTour rankings (as at March 24 after Volta a Catalunya and Ghent-Wevelgem)